Live in the Moment - Lashton

Chapter Twenty-eight

Chapter Twenty-eight

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Luke clutched Ashton's hand tightly as he pressed his parent's doorbell. Both were nervous for the reaction. It may even be possible that the topic of Ashton's job won't come up, but if it did it would be the elephant in the room.

Luke's father arrived at the door and looked shocked to see the mysterious boy his son had been seeing. As the blonde had been so secretive about it both suspected there was a huge age difference between the pair, yet to his father they looked like a normal couple. He couldn't figure out if there was a catch or not, or Luke was just nervous as it was his first big relationship in around six years.

"So you are the mystery man my son has been disappearing off with and dumping his son on us for!" he joked, holding out his hand for the teacher to shake.

"Yes, I'm a lucky man!" Ashton laughed, firmly shaking his boyfriends fathers hand.

The pair then went inside, Luke instructing Ashton to take his shoes off, commenting on his mother hatred of shoes in the house.

"Luke's brought company!" his father announced as they entered the living room where his mother sat with the television on low volume and Theo led on his back, moving around two small toy aeroplanes in the air.

Luke's mother grinned as she inspected the man who had his hand was firmly in the blondes, clammy and shaking. "It's nice to finally meet you!" she smiled. "It's Ashton right?" she double-checked knowing her son revealed little information about the man he had been seeing.

"It is, yes," he confirmed. "It's so nice to meet you both. Luke talks about you a lot!"

Theo scrambled up when saw his father and hurried over to him, Luke chuckled and picked the small boy up. They had never been apart before, and Luke didn't know how he was going to react. "Was he okay?" the blonde asked, brushing a few strands of hair out of the young boys face.

"He kept asking how long you'd be, but he was as good as gold!" his mother revealed, continuing to observe the man who stood next to her son. He was admiring the father and son but she could tell he was nervous.

"Are you going to stay?" she asked hopefully. "We were going to order a takeaway. Theo's already eaten but it'd be great to catch up and get to know you, Ashton."

Luke bit his lip with hesitation and looked at Ashton. Ashton slipped his hand back into the blonde giving it a tight squeeze for support. "Yeah, sure, yeah we can do a takeaway can't we?" Luke said, his voice a little shaky. He placed his son back down and pulled Ashton over to one of the sofas and the pair sat down. "I'll just have some rice though, I've had enough this weekend."

Ashton placed a supportive hand on his boyfriend's knee. "He's had half a bean burger and some dairy-free ice cream without a fuss," Ashton commented seeing worry struck his mothers face.

She nodded realising that was a lot for her son, who she had not seen eat a proper meal in years. "Do you want anything?" she asked Ashton, not minding getting something for him as it seemed he did a lot for her son and his son.

Ashton after must hesitation told them what he wanted. "Come on then Luke, let's go and get it!" Luke groaned in frustration as Ashton gave him a worried glance. Nonetheless, Luke agreed and followed his father out to the car.

Theo jumped into his father place and grinned at Ashton, placing his tiny index finger to his lip. Ashton chuckled and repeated the action.

"What secret are you keeping from me, Theo?" Liz asked, jokingly glaring at the small boy. Theo kept his mouth tightly sealed. "Okay, I could ask Ashton to tickle you, that'll get it out of you!"

The small boy shook his head. "Ashton knows the secret too," he revealed, grinning at his teacher.

Ashton sighed and smiled at the boy. He wished he hadn't made the innocent gesture as it would only raise conflict.

She inspected the older man once more, before beginning to question him. "You've been seeing Luke for how long now?"

"Just over six months," Ashton stated, his leg bouncing up and down nervously. "I've been through it all really, but I think they're both getting stronger."

She nodded in confirmation, Theo was getting too heavy for her to lift with ease and she could see a noticeable difference in the colour of her son's skin and a slight change in weight.

"You don't live with them though?" she asked, confused about the situation.

"No," Ashton confirmed. "I'm there enough to claim a resident. But, no I usually go home at night. I do like to be there to make sure he's feeding Theo right as well as himself."

"You've done a great job with getting Luke to get help, I've never been able to do it!" Liz laughed. "But, it's better now before it's too late."

He nodded in agreement, "He's nowhere near normal but him just eating a little is enough for now."

She sighed. "We always knew there was something deeper than just a dislike of food but he didn't like us interfering once he turned eighteen. I think having Theo kept him more grounded."

Ashton looked over at the small boy who had zoned out of the conversation, he was led on his back, his head and arms hanging over the edge of his sofa, his shirt slightly ridden up to reveal his stomach.

"I would have never thought someone could starve their child like that. When I saw Theo I just knew there was something wrong and I wanted to help with it, I didn't realise I would end up falling in love."

"You met Theo before Luke?" she questioned confused.

Ashton's eyes widened in panic, knowing he had messed up, doing the one thing that Luke did not want to happen. He simply nodded and closed his eyes in panic. His mother was already prying and she would pry deeper. "I'm Theo's teacher."

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